Olentangy school board

Friday

Sep 28, 2007 at 12:01 AMOct 9, 2007 at 2:51 PM

Seven candidates are running for three seats on the Olentangy school board in Delaware County. Two of the three seats are held by Barry Jamieson and Brad Reynolds, who are not seeking re-election. The third seat is occupied by Scott Galloway, who was appointed to the board last year and is seeking a full term.

Each seat carries a four-year term that expires Dec. 31, 2011, and board members are paid roughly $3,000 annually.

Julie Wagner Feasel is running unopposed for a fourth seat to which she was appointed last year. That two-year term expires Dec. 31, 2009.

StacyDunbar, 44; senior change leader at Ashland Inc.; bachelor’s degree in business and communications from Point Loma University, 1987; master’s degree in education from University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, 2006; mother of a seventh-grader and ninth-grader in the district.

Dunbar would like to see “more interaction between the board and the community” and wants to protect the district’s vision, which she defines as promoting a respectful, caring and safe environment with a challenging curriculum.

Scott D. Galloway,40; manager, merchandise planning and analysis with Big Lots; appointed to the board in October 2006; bachelor’s degree in finance from Ohio State University, 1991; father of a kindergartener, second-grader and fifth-grader in the district.

Galloway wants to see the district “continue the significant strides it has already made in reducing spending and future tax needs.” He most values the strong administration currently in place and Olentangy’s “culture of academic excellence.”

MarkWilliamIannotta,49; attorney, specializing in insurance defense; holds a volunteer position in the district as president of the Olentangy Men’s Soccer Boosters; bachelor’s degree in political science and economics from Denison University, 1980; law degree, Capital University, 1988; father of an 11th-grader in the district.

Iannotta has been involved in redistricting committees for the last 10 years and believes Olentangy has maintained a “high quality of education in the face of all this growth.” He believes “ the district has done it in a fairly fiscally responsible manner.”

Eric Kunar, 37; director of operations at Sears Carpet and Upholstery; bachelor’s degree in government from Oberlin College, 1992; master’s degree in business from Ashland University, 2007; eighth-grade football coach at Hyatts Middle School; father of a first-grader and sixth-grader in the district.

As a father and coach, Kunar said, it’s his nature to want to be involved with the schools. He vowed to bring a new perspective to the board if elected, and said the district will face more challenges in the future because of its “enrollment explosion.”

Erick Logan,44; real estate agent with Heller and Associates; bachelor’s degree in international business from Ohio Wesleyan University, 1992; vice president of the Spina Bifida Association of Central Ohio; father of a fourth-grader and two third-graders in the district.

Logan said he’s concerned with the district’s rising taxes and doesn’t want to tax young families out. He also said he thinks there is a “certain degree of top-heaviness in the administration,” while teachers are doing more with less.

Dimon McFerson, 70; retired; former chairman and CEO of Nationwide; served on the board from 2004 to August 2006; serves on the Ohio State University Board of Trustees; bachelor’s degree in business education from UCLA, 1959; master’s degree in public administration from the University of Southern California, 1972; grandfather of 14 grandchildren in the district.

McFerson wants to finish what he was elected to do before cancer forced him to step down from the board last year. Among his goals for the district: continuing to meet all state standards and generating voter support “so we can have the resources to provide a great education.”

Jennifer Smith,34; stay-at-home mother; formerly worked as a finance counselor; bachelor’s degree in political science from Ohio State University, 1995; mother of a first-grader and third-grader in the district.

Smith views the district’s most-important issues as managing district finances, continually improving academic achievement and successfully managing growth. Smith also said she would work to ensure that the board seeks more input from residents.